Official College Hockey Thread 2013

[gphr513]

Despite the refs (who were ****ing awful), that was a fantastic hockey game.

 

[Digitalbooya]

Well congrats to the gophers. Sounded like an exciting tournament!

 

[AdmiralsFan24]

Same for UW-OSU. Badgers couldn't buy a PP for their life despite dominating OSU and out-shooting them 37-22. I think they got 2-3 PP "chances" but maybe one of them was the full 2 minutes. OSU had something like 5 PPs and 3-4 were 2 minutes (these are just guesses after watching the whole game). The refs refused to give the badgers a PP in the 3rd when I thought that there could have been 2+.

Oh well. 3-1 loss.

Not like they would do anything on the power play if they had the full 2 minutes anyways. And I take back what I said, that white out thing was stupid.

If you're going to do something like that you either have to give people more than a week's notice or give out white shirts. They did neither and other than the student section, it was an epic fail.

 

[Randy BoBandy]

Should just called it the Gopher Classic or something. It is supposed to show the best teams in Minnesota. Yet the Gophers are the only ones to host the thing every year not to mention one of the other 4 teams must sit out every year. Then I have to listen to the homer Gopher brodcast all tournament. What a waste of time. If this "tournament" lasts I can't wait until the gopher homers start pumping out stats like " they have won 4 of 5 tournaments cups" . No **** they are the only team allowed in the tournament every single year and the only ones hosting the thing.

O yea and what the **** is up with ending the thing with a shootout. Good game ends up getting ruined.

**** the Gophers.

 

[Dee Oh Cee]

How do you really feel?

 

[Sportsfan1]

Two things that make this Gopher Hockey team scary good this year is their scoring depth and their back-end. The Gophers are almost always potent offensively, but unlike the past few seasons, they have a wealth of scoring depth. They have 9 players with at least 5 goals, 6 players with at least 7, and 11 players who have double-digit points this season. They are second in the nation in scoring, and this is with a power play that has been less than Gopher like (at just over 16%). Their power play has been heating up (two goals tonight), and if it keeps improving, watch out.

They are also a really, really strong team defensively. That starts with Wilcox, of course. He's been absolutely outstanding this season. But their defensemen (and entire team for that matter) have played very well defensively in front if him as well. You have to go back to Thanksgiving weekend to find a game where the Gophers have given up more than two goals. So unlike years past, they don't need to put up a ton of goals to win.

This d-corps the Gophers have is special. The freshmen have been fantastic, but man are Mike Reilly and Brady Skjei special players. If Reilly stays another year, he could be a very strong Hobey contender.

If the Gopher's 18-2-3 record to start the season wasn't impressive enough, they've done it against the nation's second most difficult schedule. Lots of hockey left to play, and certainly still stuff they need to work on, but this team could end up being very special when all is said and done.

I said St. Cloud vs. Minnesota for the NCAA title with some level of seriousness. Now the Gophers didn't play great this weekend I thought on a whole as a team, but still found a way to win one (technically both games). The second being totally ridiculous officiating hampering them too.

Even when they don't play well, Wilcox is bailing them out, really, really have been getting more of a special feeling about this team as this season continues to progress.

Totally the opposite of last year, when my feeling about the Gophers got worse and worse, this year feels and looks completely different.

Should just called it the Gopher Classic or something. It is supposed to show the best teams in Minnesota. Yet the Gophers are the only ones to host the thing every year not to mention one of the other 4 teams must sit out every year. Then I have to listen to the homer Gopher brodcast all tournament. What a waste of time. If this "tournament" lasts I can't wait until the gopher homers start pumping out stats like " they have won 4 of 5 tournaments cups" . No **** they are the only team allowed in the tournament every single year and the only ones hosting the thing.

O yea and what the **** is up with ending the thing with a shootout. Good game ends up getting ruined.

**** the Gophers.

Sour grapes huh? LOVE IT!

Newsflash for ya on the bolded part btw, the Gophers are always one of the very best if not the best team in the state, and they are also the biggest attendance draw so you're darn right they are going to be in it every year.

North Star college cup was awesome, fun and will continue to get better as the years progress here. You can tell the way the teams played how much they cared, and it was a blast! Gophers once again reign supreme, as it should be hehe!

 

[Ban Hammered]

Other than some PK issues, Huskies played very well this weekend. Fix those and we are back where we should be. Jonny B. is a beast. If he stays all 4 years, the school goal record of 86 should be threatened.
We all know the Gophers are the money and are going to be in it and whatever, but this really should be whoever finishes 4th should be out and if that is MN one year, then so be it.

 

[gphr513]

Should just called it the Gopher Classic or something. It is supposed to show the best teams in Minnesota. Yet the Gophers are the only ones to host the thing every year not to mention one of the other 4 teams must sit out every year. Then I have to listen to the homer Gopher brodcast all tournament. What a waste of time. If this "tournament" lasts I can't wait until the gopher homers start pumping out stats like " they have won 4 of 5 tournaments cups" . No **** they are the only team allowed in the tournament every single year and the only ones hosting the thing.

O yea and what the **** is up with ending the thing with a shootout. Good game ends up getting ruined.

**** the Gophers.

But honestly, you really would want to have this tournament without the Gophers there? A tournament with St. Cloud, UMD, Bemidji, and Mankato. How much would that tournament draw: 5,000 maybe? Sounds like a blast!

Plus, the team that doesn't play in the tournament each year gets the Gophers in their building for a series, aka 2 guaranteed sellouts. Hell, a team like Bemidji might even RATHER have the Gophers for a weekend in Bemidji than go play in this tournament, from a bottom line standpoint.

 

[J22*]

Should just called it the Gopher Classic or something. It is supposed to show the best teams in Minnesota. Yet the Gophers are the only ones to host the thing every year not to mention one of the other 4 teams must sit out every year. Then I have to listen to the homer Gopher brodcast all tournament. What a waste of time. If this "tournament" lasts I can't wait until the gopher homers start pumping out stats like " they have won 4 of 5 tournaments cups" . No **** they are the only team allowed in the tournament every single year and the only ones hosting the thing.

O yea and what the **** is up with ending the thing with a shootout. Good game ends up getting ruined.

**** the Gophers.

Not really sure whats up with all the hostility towards the U,when you should really be thanking them for including your team.

BTW- The UMD dive team is actually really good at hockey. I was impressed with Cloud as well.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

We all know the Gophers are the money and are going to be in it and whatever, but this really should be whoever finishes 4th should be out and if that is MN one year, then so be it.

They need to re-think the 3:30 Friday game, because attendance looked abysmal. You're not going to get a whole lot of Duluth/Mankato/St. Cloud (or Minnesota, for that matter) students there at that time. Maybe make it a Saturday/Sunday event.

 

[Northland Wild Man]

Right now the U is probably the best team in the state, but I disagree with people saying other teams in the state should be treated like the little teams that should be lucky they are allowed to play with them.

Minnesota is a hell of a lot bigger than just the twin cities.

 

[J22*]

Right now the U is probably the best team in the state, but I disagree with people saying other teams in the state should be treated like the little teams that should be lucky they are allowed to play with them.

Minnesota is a hell of a lot bigger than just the twin cities.

I personally love the fact that there are 5 D1 teams in the state, and will actually find myself rooting for the other teams more often than not.

My issue is with guys tht aren't smart enough to realize that, without the U and men like Mariucci and Brooks, their school most likely doesnt have a D1 team. This tourney is a perfect example of this. The Huskies, Mavs, Bulldogs and Beavers gain so much more from this tournament than the Gophers do, but still, you get guys *****ing about how it favors the U. Try seeing if the Xcel would host, or if FSN would broadcast a tourney without the Gophers involved.

 

[Ban Hammered]

They need to re-think the 3:30 Friday game, because attendance looked abysmal. You're not going to get a whole lot of Duluth/Mankato/St. Cloud (or Minnesota, for that matter) students there at that time. Maybe make it a Saturday/Sunday event.

Saturday/Sunday may be better, but it's not like the Saturday afternoon game was very well attended either. Like I said, I get that this won't survive without MN fans (read money/numbers) but it doesn't mean I have to like the format. I really thought we had the 2nd highest number of fans there so seeing the numbers next year will be interesting without us.

 

[gphr513]

Right now the U is probably the best team in the state, but I disagree with people saying other teams in the state should be treated like the little teams that should be lucky they are allowed to play with them.

Minnesota is a hell of a lot bigger than just the twin cities.

It's about money. Gophers = bigger attendance = more money.

And that's not tArrogance. That's a fact.

 

[MuckOG]

It's about money. Gophers = bigger attendance = more money.

And that's not tArrogance. That's a fact.

Agreed.

This tournament is a great idea, and will only grow. I also think they should consider running this on Saturday and Sunday to get the bigger crowds.

 

[Jarick]

Well, since they are copying the Beanpot, it makes sense to do what they are doing in terms of having four teams and two games per team. Fri/Sat isn't bad, would be curious about Sat/Sun though. That way they could do a 3pm game and a 7pm game both days.

Overall it's a good idea I think.

 

[Randy BoBandy]

I really don't care about the money and all the hype the gophers bring. I just hate watching FSN and all i hear about is gophers gophers gophers. Chorske and the other idiots don't have a ****ing clue who is on the other team. The North Star Cup not the Gopher Cup. Continuing to downplay the other 4 D1 schools is not beneficial to the tournaments success in the long run. Others like me who follow other teams won't give a rats ass about any of these "tournament" games if it continues as is. Building up state rivalry is the whole point right?

So yea its the Gophers tournament and all other schools should be lucky to be in it. Watch your step Gopher fans or you might fall off your high horse.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

Chorske was really, really, really bad during the UMD game.

 

[Dr Jan Itor]

I really don't care about the money and all the hype the gophers bring. I just hate watching FSN and all i hear about is gophers gophers gophers. Chorske and the other idiots don't have a ****ing clue who is on the other team. The North Star Cup not the Gopher Cup. Continuing to downplay the other 4 D1 schools is not beneficial to the tournaments success in the long run. Others like me who follow other teams won't give a rats ass about any of these "tournament" games if it continues as is. Building up state rivalry is the whole point right?

So yea its the Gophers tournament and all other schools should be lucky to be in it. Watch your step Gopher fans or you might fall off your high horse.

With the U... televised and at the X.

Without the U... maybe televised and definitely not at the X.

It probably does sound really pompous, but the tourney just wouldn't work without them, unless you'd want to have it at Ridder Arena every 5 years.

 

[gphr513]

I really don't care about the money and all the hype the gophers bring.

And that's why you're not in charge of running the tournament! Not trying to sound like a jerk, but it's just the truth that the Gophers need to be there.

How many fans do you think would be there if it were St. Cloud, UMD, Bemidji, and Mankato? I'd guess 5K.

 

[J22*]

Chorske was really, really, really bad during the UMD game.

You could tell that after about the 6th or 7th blatant dive by a Bulldog, Chorske had no interest in sounding impartial anymore.

 

[Paul Bunyan]

Despite the refs (who were ****ing awful), that was a fantastic hockey game.

It was brutal, especially that second day of games.

I will say though, I had a blast as did my two friends who flew in for the tournament and Yellowcard Sunday night.

Still, I don't understand what it is with these tournaments and their lack of merchandise. First ever tournament....and they run out of pucks before the first game. People here eat all this stuff up, they did last year at the Final Five, they do at regular season Wild games with the special pucks for the new division yet, they still seem to never order enough.

I bring this up, because I had a six year old kid come up to me and politely ask me for a puck at the end of day one. People don't come up to me ever unless it's to compliment my beard or something so I knew he must have really wanted one (and it was his birthday that weekend).

I was glad I was able to get some extras so he could have one, and I was also happy that he was polite and his parents who were maybe 20 feet away asked him when he came back to them smiling "Did you remember to say thank you? Did you tell him it was your birthday on Sunday?"

In this time where it seems like politeness at times is going by it was nice to see that, and it was cool to be at the other end of making a kid's day like an older kid did for me when he got my Kirby Puckett card signed for me during batting practice at Tigers Stadium a few months after my Dad had passed away when I was six.

ANYWAY, I collect all sorts of Minnesota hockey swag, and root for our teams when they aren't playing the Gophers, so I was pretty shocked when they had basically nothing in terms of the other schools (even Minnesota), and that was disappointing especially for my friends coming in from Ohio.

Oh well. Here's to many more of these tournaments, it was good craic overall.

It's about money. Gophers = bigger attendance = more money.

And that's not tArrogance. That's a fact.

This is largely the same thing with B1G Hockey as well. Instead of bringing the bigger teams in from the WCHA and CCHA they just destroyed it and hope some teams can bring in fans, but basically hinge it on a select few.

I will say this is the first time I saw actual "sections" of fans, like at soccer matches, and of course for the St. Cloud / Mankato game, they were both not on the TV side, and most people didn't show up until the U played or for the Championship game, but there were what 14,000 some there? So it looked horrible on TV from what I'm told on Saturday.

I'd also say this was WAAAAAY better than the Final Five set up with just a small window in between games. It was brutal waiting FOREVER for the 2nd game to start up. 4pm on a Friday and it still drew crowds better than some do on nights around the country, pretty solid to be honest.

Personally, I'd like to see all 5 teams take part in it, whether it's like a Final Five tournament type deal or what, but as you say if the Gophers sit out then there goes the majority of the marketing, the TV money, and everything else. This is a business, and at the end of the day, that's what is going to sell especially in a tournament that doesn't have any prestige yet.

 

[Digitalbooya]

The ice at Yost arena is complete crap. Never seen a puck bounce over sticks so much. Anyways, the badgers are giving it zero effort and aren't winning puck battles (they are soooooo ****ing slow). They are well on their way to a 1-6 away record.

 

[Digitalbooya]

Wow, so it's okay for the goalie to push the net off in the shootout to cause a no goal?

 

[Ban Hammered]

Pretty sure they'd have to prove it was intentional. Hard to do in that situation, but he should have been given another shot.

Good win for SCSU to get back in front.